School facility updates close to completed

By Annette Tait
Progress on a number of maintenance projects undertaken over the summer was discussed at the August Center-Stanton Public Schools board meeting.
The rain gutter near the walk-in freezer and refrigerator area of the kitchen has been completed. The gap that allowed water to run off the roof and onto the tops of the units has been corrected.
“This last rain it worked, we just had a small puddle,” CSPS Superintendent Tracy Peterson said.
District staff replaced warped and/or cracked boards in elementary playground benches, and noted that repairs are also needed to the windbreak by the first-grade classroom. A post and uprights will be installed.
Bids were received from Sletten Excavating to place concrete where old concrete and an asphalt/dirt area near the coal storage area and pool collect rainwater, to repair cracked sidewalks, and to place driveway rock behind the shop area/dumpsters and where the school buses park. The board approved all three bids.

Diesel tank
Peterson provided an update on a diesel tank discovered by MDU when it was on site to replace and upgrade transformers. In the process of doing so, MDU discovered a buried diesel tank behind the school.
“It doesn’t show up on any of the plans, but was located with a trencher MDU was using,” Peterson said, noting the tank was used for fuel for an old heating system.
The tank still has liquid in it, possibly diesel fuel with ground water mixed in. MDU soil sampling found some diesel present. The district has visited with the state health department, and is looking into grant funding to help remove the tank.